Behaviour in the bathroom while carrying?

[Guest DanE479]

Food for thought. The topic came up on another forum I'm at, when a guy asked about what people do when the have to drop a deuce when they are out and about and carrying.

This was my response:

If I'm carrying and I have to #2, I take the holster off the belt, go to (or wait for) the handicap stall, and slide the holstered gun between the handrail and the wall. Keeps it safe (and handy too).

A bathroom stall is probably the most confined place that you will ever be in. Think about how you would have to react if you were dropping a deuce and the figurative poop hit the fan. That's another reason that I use the Handicapper. More room to move if I have to.

Remember to think tacitcal; even while dropping deuce (or pissing)...

It's also why I always use an enclosed stall to piss when I'm carrying as well. You most often hold your donlge with your dominant hand, and you're in a dis-advantageous position for a gun-grab... Think on THAT... Bathroom stalls also offer a limited form of cover (depending on the round and stall material).

Oh, and always remember to wait until you are the only one at the sink while you are washing your hands. Even if someone else shows up and your'e not done. Stop. Dry hands. Wait. Resume when you are alone. Do it descreetly, though. Don't draw attention to your actions just because you are carrying.

Carrying a pistol is a Mindset; a way if you will. You must alter your way of thinking to always remember that you are carrying a pistol, and that you must defend IT, or be prepared to defend yourself at any time. I wish that there were more people teaching credible and effective classes on proper firearms retention and reaction to gun-grabs...

[Oh Shoot]

...

If I'm carrying and I have to #2, I .......

Sorry for immediate off topic, but gotta ask: How is it, not being LEO, you can carry in IL?

- OS

[Guest DanE479]

I used to live in TN (up until August), and I have a couple of different out of state licenses for when I visit friends in Indiana (quite often) and other states. I still carry quite regularly.

I also used to do security in Illnois back years ago and carried then.

Illinois is just a state of mind... Not my reality!

[Oh Shoot]

I used to live in TN (up until August), and I have a couple of different out of state licenses for when I visit friends in Indiana (quite often) and other states. I still carry quite regularly.

I also used to do security in Illnois back years ago and carried then.

Illinois is just a state of mind... Not my reality!

Ah...I thought your moniker was familiar but didn't look back on your posts to refresh memory, thanks...

As far as the crapper, either I have an XDsc in IWB and it sits fine upright on belt when I drop trou, or have Kahr in pocket which also stays in there no probs.

- OS

[mikegideon]

So... if you accidentally drop a Jennings .380 in the toilet after the deuce falls, do you go in after it, or just flush it?

[Alpha13]

So... if you accidentally drop a Jennings .380 in the toilet after the deuce falls, do you go in after it, or just flush it?

[Guest Guy N. Cognito]

To me, the bigger concern when going #2 in public is dropping your pistol while doing the deed. When I do so, I enter the stall, transfer the pistol from the holster to an empty pocket, do the deed, wash hands and reholster (back in the stall, of course.) Pretty simple and allows access to my pistol if I need it.

Question, Dan: why do you insist on being the only person in the bathroom when you wash your hands? I'm assuming, at that point, that you've got your gun back on your belt and in the holster......so you're prepared to defend yourself. It seems to be an excessive step.

[Guest tnxdshooter]

I use the handicap stool to. It has hand rails for grabbing ahold of when straining. It is the cadillac of the poopin stools.

[Guest DanE479]

To me, the bigger concern when going #2 in public is dropping your pistol while doing the deed. When I do so, I enter the stall, transfer the pistol from the holster to an empty pocket, do the deed, wash hands and reholster (back in the stall, of course.) Pretty simple and allows access to my pistol if I need it.

Question, Dan: why do you insist on being the only person in the bathroom when you wash your hands? I'm assuming, at that point, that you've got your gun back on your belt and in the holster......so you're prepared to defend yourself. It seems to be an excessive step.

It's about attitude, posture, and slippery hands. Most sinks are low enough that you have to bend over some and that has a tendency to show your firearm a little more (depending on what and how you carry. I'm an OWB Glock 19 or 21 guy). You're also more focused on looking at your hands to make sure you did a good job. Also, soap and/or water = slippery hands and if there is someone esle in there, I don't want to have a problem holding onto my gun if I have to. It's not only abut having the gun securely in the holster. It's also about being prepared at any time to have to get in the fight.

[mav]

First off, if possible, I would try to hold it till I got back home, If that isn't possible and I am forced to evacuate my bowels, the last thing on my mind is my handgun and setting up a tactical position. I am thinking, "Hurry up and and don't touch anything." I guess I'm just a sissy and would be an easy target in a public bathroom.

[mikegideon]

First off, if possible, I would try to hold it till I got back home, If that isn't possible and I am forced to evacuate my bowels, the last thing on my mind is my handgun and setting up a tactical position. I am thinking, "Hurry up and and don't touch anything." I guess I'm just a sissy and would be an easy target in a public bathroom.

But, you have to maintain a tactical position at all times. Start with some pants-on-the-ground drills. I think there's a video

[tnhawk]

I don't usually plan for such an event, but it usually works out

[mikegideon]

I don't usually plan for such an event, but it usually works out

Yep. If you fight it, you wind up looking like this...

[Guest Guy N. Cognito]

It's about attitude, posture, and slippery hands. Most sinks are low enough that you have to bend over some and that has a tendency to show your firearm a little more (depending on what and how you carry. I'm an OWB Glock 19 or 21 guy). You're also more focused on looking at your hands to make sure you did a good job. Also, soap and/or water = slippery hands and if there is someone esle in there, I don't want to have a problem holding onto my gun if I have to. It's not only abut having the gun securely in the holster. It's also about being prepared at any time to have to get in the fight.

So.........

At what point, exactly, do you decide that it's safe to soap up? A threat can come in at any second, right? Wouldn't the tactically superior thing to do be to just wipe your hands on your pants and exit? Have we discovered a hole in modern training? I've attended over 200 hours of training, but I've never trained with soapy hands!!!

Seriously, I understand that a threat may present itself at any time, but I'm not going to spend 10 minutes in the bathroom starting and stopping the sink simply to maintain a fraction of a tactical advantage in the unlikely event that someone attacks me. I'm pretty sure that the massive MIRROR in front of me will give me the ability to watch my 6, and that I am perfectly capable of washing my hands without looking at them. I'm also pretty sure that I can function my pistol with soapy hands, even if my grip is less than perfect. I think that, for the 20 seconds I may wash my hands, I'll just rely on my other self-defense skills to keep me safe.

Edited December 4, 2010 by Guy N. Cognito

[mikegideon]

If it's a high quality deuce, nobody's gonna come in anyway. Your tactical advantage... boiled turnips.

[mav]

If it's a high quality deuce, nobody's gonna come in anyway. Your tactical advantage... boiled turnips.

Only if they are desparate.

[Guest 6.8 AR]

Tactical bathroom clearing. I never imagined this.

[Guest DanE479]

Guy: You do your thing, I'll do mine. My point is that you need to remember at all times to be aware of your surroudings and not focus in on something routine to the detriment of your safety.

Your threat level also depends on your location. When I was going to the bathroom at my old office that was in a secure building, I was a little more relaxed about things. When I was on the job and out on a site, I'd usually lock the door to the bathroom behind me to cut down on the potential for an issue.

I've also never spent 20 minutes trying to wash my hands. I'm pretty quick at that...

[mikegideon]

Tactical bathroom clearing. I never imagined this.

It's a southern thing. My granny taught me

[Guest CJK]

+1000 this thread -- haven't laughed so hard in quite a while

[Guest Seraph]

So... if you accidentally drop a Jennings .380 in the toilet after the deuce falls, do you go in after it, or just flush it?

That's gonna be my new euphemism for going #2. I'll just say I need to go "drop a Jennings."

[HOLEPUNCHER]

This thread is beginning to smell.

[frontier737]

Why wash your hands after dropping a steamer? (Tounge in cheek)

In the world of aircraft maintenance you can tell the difference between a pilot and a mechanic in the bathroom. The pilot washes his hands after he goes and the and mechanic before.

When a pilot sees that he may state "pilot's always wash up after they go" and the mechanic will state "mechanics don't pee on our hands".

[Guest Guy N. Cognito]

We all have it wrong. The tactically correct thing to do is crap your pants. Not only does it keep you out of the scary bathroom, but.......what criminal would want to attack a guy that smelled like poopie?

[Justbo1901]

I use the handicap stool to. It has hand rails for grabbing ahold of when straining. It is the cadillac of the poopin stools.

Don't know if anyone of you guys has been to Vegas but the stalls at the Wynn Las Vegas Resort are the "Cadillac of poopin Stools" I walked there Just to do #2 after the Buffet down the street check it out

VIP Tour of the Wynn Las Cegas -- Hotel Bathrooms Exposed